This article is 3 years old. Images might not display.
"It is critical to rethink our heating sources and bring geothermal into play when planning the future energy mix. We see a huge potential for geothermal based heating in many European cities that are struggling to phase out coal to meet the climate targets. We believe countries like Denmark, Germany and Poland offer the right subsurface conditions to significantly reduce the need for coal, gas and imported biomass. The 30-year agreement is an important first step of our journey. We are very glad to see the strong support from the Danish government and Aarhus municipality, including the trust in our team and technology, to develop, what will become, EU's biggest geothermal based plant," said Samir Abboud, CEO at Innargi.
Aarhus municipality has 330,000 citizens and 180,000 households and 95 per cent of the households are connected to the district heating system. The planned capacity of the geothermal heating plant in Aarhus is 110MW, equalling 20 per cent of Aarhus' district heating demand, and the annual CO2 emissions are expected to be reduced by up to 165,000t. Subject to a successful appraisal process, the geothermal plant will be completed in 2029 with an expected operation of at least 30 years.
"This is a historic day to district heating. I am proud to make heating greener for the citizens of Aarhus. Geothermal energy marks a significant step in our endeavours to turn an increasing amount of energy into sustainable district heating. Geothermal energy is a precondition for reaching our goal in 2030 of phasing out imported wood pellets," said Bjarne Munk Jensen, MD of the city's district heating company, AffaldVarme Aarhus.
Innargi, which was founded by A.P. Moller Holding, raised capital from Denmark's state-owned and largest pension fund, ATP, and the Danish utility company, NRGi.
"The A.P. Moller Group holds extensive historic experience of large-scale subsurface projects. A few years ago, we divested our oil-related E&P activities. We founded Innargi to bring these competencies into play for the benefit of the energy transition. We see great opportunities for Innargi to develop green district heating for Aarhus and millions of homes in other cities in Europe," said Robert M. Uggla, CEO of A.P. Møller Holding A/S.
Got a story? Email: duncan.moore@aspermontmedia.com
